Abstract

Thermal rectification in thickness asymmetric graphenenanoribbons connecting single-layer with multi-layergraphene is investigated by using classical nonequilibrium molecular dynamics. It is reported that the graphenenanoribbons with thickness-asymmetry have a good thermal rectification. The thermal rectification factor depends on temperature as well as the thickness-ratio of the two-segment. Our results provide a direct evidence that the thermal rectifier can be achieved in a nanostructure crossing two- and three-dimension.

Received 12 July 2011Accepted 19 October 2011Published online 07 November 2011

Acknowledgments:

Z.W.R. thanks Y. Xiao at City Univ. of Hong Kong for his contribution in plotting Fig. 1. This work was supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11004082 and 11175067), the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province, China (Grant Nos. 10451063201005249 and S201101000332), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, JNU (Grant No. 21609305).